View Full Version : When war starts internet may die, sort of...
Robert Harris
11-26-2002, 08:27 PM
Bad news, I am afraid. We will have to go back to training carrier pigeons.
Excerpts:
Tuesday, 26 November, 2002, 16:42 GMT
Risk of internet collapse rising
Simulated attacks on key internet hubs have shown how vulnerable the worldwide network is to disruption by disaster or terrorist action.
If an attack or disaster destroyed the major nodes of the internet, the network itself could begin to unravel, warn the scientists who carried out the simulations.
The virtual attacks showed that the net would keep going in major cities, but outlying areas and smaller towns would gradually be cut off.
The researchers warn that the net has become more vulnerable as it has become more commercialised and key net cables are concentrated in the hands of fewer organisations.
More at:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2514651.stm
Only a matter of time before somebody blows a node.
Hello satellite net connections.
*sigh*
ethics
11-26-2002, 10:53 PM
I think this is when you will see people pissed. Ever see a geek with his net down?
valgore
11-27-2002, 03:35 AM
that would suck but then again war is hell and we will all pay a price. losing the internet would be trivial compared to the sacrifices our service men and women and their families will make.
As someone providing Fixed Wireless, the aim is to allow
anybody anywhere to connect without copper wires.
While this is currently in the early deployment stage, with
some of the proposed regulations giving us more leeway,
the future looks good.
We can overcome the disruption in communications given
the motivation and the necessary permission.
I have to wonder if the FCC is looking to us (in the same
way as HAM operators provide backup communications).
Basically, the cheap wireless networking gear you buy at
Best Buy is capable of connecting at 1 Mbps (almost T1
speeds) up to distances of 70 miles under the right
conditions.
If you all in the cities can stay connected, we in the rural
areas will find a way of connecting to you!
I guess it's all part of that good old-fashioned can-do spirit!
immortal one
11-27-2002, 08:48 PM
It's a miracle that all the damn spammers haven't brought it down yet.
Pyrion
11-28-2002, 04:47 AM
What'd be nice is if our government stopped getting their panties in a twist about crackers (black hat hackers, no relation to white trash) and instead hired the fucks to go after our enemies' networks. I mean come on. Get a black hat out of his parents' house and pay him to start fucking up the assholes (no pun intended) that have been fucking with us for years now.
ethics
11-28-2002, 09:57 AM
What's a black hat hacker?
Paladin
11-28-2002, 11:07 AM
Originally posted by Robert Harris
...Simulated attacks on key internet hubs have shown how vulnerable the worldwide network is to disruption by disaster or terrorist action.
....
The virtual attacks showed that the net would keep going in major cities, but outlying areas and smaller towns would gradually be cut off.... To bring down the Internet you would have to have coordinated attacks at several major hubs. I do not see how it could affect rural more than the big urban since the rurals merely feed off the urbans.
FWIW we have been there. Attached is a photo of what I believe is the Verizon C.O. in Lower Manhattan, from a bit over a year ago. I was a moderator at DSLR back then, and my tracert to his servers in NY were going Calif.-NY-London-NY to get around the break.